Croatian Sights: Diocletian’s Palace

If you’re in Split you simply cannot miss it. The structure: a fortress of ancient marble quarried locally in the 4th century AD to serve as a retirement home for a Roman emperor. Today Diocletian’s Palace is in and out of time at the epicenter of a booming city. Truth be told with just a few short days in town I didn’t get to wander around aimlessly through the winding walls and narrow alleyways

Diocletian 2As much as I would have liked to. You could spend days getting lost here. However, many of my destinations were within the palace walls so I got to know her casually. A few restaurants, a museum, some shops, a short cut here or there…a beautiful image that caught my eye,

Diocletian 3 Diocletian 5Yes I loved that this historical palace was omnipresent in everyday life. Just north of the palace in a little square stands a striking, almost wizardly, statue of a 10th century bishop.

Diocletian 1Local lore says that if you rub his big toe it will bring you luck.

Diocletian 4So many have the toe has worn to a gold color. I am hoping that this luck brings me back to the world’s most intact Roman palace one day, and all over the country of Croatia!

This entry was posted in Croatia and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , . Bookmark the permalink.

Leave a Reply